Our View: Keep cheese names on the market

We feel the need to "whey" in on an issue that has a huge economic impact on the dairy industry.

The European Union wants the United States to back off on selling cheese with names like Parmesan, feta and Gorgonzola because - they claim - it cuts into brand identity and sales in EU countries where the cheeses originate.

What the EU fails to recognize is that these cheeses would not be as popular as they are without the estimated $4 billion in annual U.S. sales. The matter could come up in trade talks, but the EU would be wise to let the matter drop and move onto more substantive negotiations.

Changing the names of these popular cheeses would confuse consumers and lead to a decline in sales, something neither the U.S. or EU wants. The EU could make attempts to restrict marketing of U.S.-made cheeses with European names like Parmesan, Asiago, Gorgonzola, feta, fontina, grana, Muenster, Neufchatel and Romano.

That also would be a mistake and hurt many small- and medium-sized cheese businesses who have built reputations making their own varieties of these cheeses.

If lobbying has any impact - and it usually does - the EU won't get far in its attempt. A bipartisan group of 55 senators wrote U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack this week asking them not to agree to any such proposals by the EU. The group is led by New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Pennsylvania Sen. Patrick Toomey, R-Pa.

It is a huge issue in Wisconsin, where milk production is among the highest of any state in the nation. Manitowoc County farmers alone sold 1.275 billion pounds of milk in 2012, the latest figures available. Some of that milk is sold to produce the very cheeses the EU would restrict.

Dairy farmers and cheese makers say Europeans originally brought the cheeses here, but American producers have made them more popular and profitable.

"We've been manufacturing, marketing, advertising, and making the cheese interesting to consumers, and now we're supposed to walk away from it?" Manitowoc dairy farm owner Pete Kappelman told the Associated Press. "That's not quite a level playing field."

The U.S. should not cave to EU demands and walk away from its commitment to produce quality cheese under current naming conventions. We agree with mega-producer Kraft that the cheese names have become generic in themselves because of the amount of use and popularity they have gained over many years in this country. To change that would be a disservice to producers and consumers alike.

So continue to enjoy your Parmesan and feta, no matter where they come from.

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Our View: Keep cheese names on the market

We feel the need to 'whey' in on an issue that has a huge economic impact on the dairy industry.

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